Act on Special Measures Concerning Nuclear Emergency Preparedness

Act on Special Measures Concerning NuclearEmergency Preparedness

(Act No. 156 of December 17, 1999)Chapter I General Provisions (Articles 1 to 6)Chapter II Obligations, etc. of Nuclear Operators Concerning Nuclear DisasterPrevention (Articles 7 to 14)Chapter III Issuance of a Declaration of a Nuclear Emergency Situation andEstablishment, etc. of Nuclear Emergency Response Headquarters (Articles 15to 24)Chapter IV Implementation, etc. of Emergency Response Measures (Articles 25and 26)Chapter V Measures for Restoration from Nuclear Emergency (Article 27)Chapter VI Miscellaneous Provisions (Articles 28 to 39)Chapter VII Penal Provisions (Articles 40 to 42)Supplementary Provisions

Chapter I General Provisions

(Purpose)Article 1 The purpose of this Act is to strengthen nuclear disaster control measures,in cooperation with the Act on Regulation of Nuclear Source Materials, NuclearFuel Materials and Reactors (Act No. 166 of 1957; hereinafter referred to as the"Reactor Regulation Act"), the Basic Act on Disaster Control Measures (Act No.223 of 1961) and other Acts concerning nuclear disaster prevention, by providingspecial measures for the obligations, etc. of nuclear operators concerning nucleardisaster prevention, the issuance of a declaration of a nuclear emergencysituation and the establishment, etc. of nuclear emergency responseheadquarters, and the implementation of emergency response measures andother matters relating to a nuclear disaster, taking into consideration theparticularity of a nuclear disaster, thereby protecting the lives, bodies andproperties of citizens from a nuclear disaster.(Definitions)Article 2 In this Act, the meanings of the terms listed in the following items shall beas prescribed respectively in those items:1

(i) "nuclear disaster" means damage caused to the lives, bodies or properties of citizens due to a nuclear emergency situation;(ii) "nuclear emergency situation" means a situation in which radioactivematerials or radiation at an abnormal level has been released outside thenuclear site of a nuclear operator (in the case of the transport of radioactivematerials outside the nuclear site (hereinafter referred to as "transport outsidethe nuclear site"), outside a vessel which is used for said transport) due to theoperation of the reactor, etc. by said nuclear operator (which means theoperation of the reactor, etc. prescribed in Article 2, paragraph 1 of the Act onCompensation for Nuclear Damage (Act No. 147 of 1961); the same shall applyhereinafter);(iii) "nuclear operator" means a person or an organization that falls under any of the following (excluding a person or an organization that has been designated,pursuant to the provisions of a Cabinet Order, by the competent minister as aperson or an organization that does not plan to use a facility for the operationof the reactor, etc. over a long period of time):(a) a person or an organization that has obtained permission for a fuelprocessing business pursuant to Article 13, paragraph 1 of the ReactorRegulation Act (including recognition given to the State under the provisionsof said paragraph applied by replacing the terms pursuant to the provisionsof Article 76 of the Reactor Regulation Act);(b) a person or an organization that has obtained permission for theestablishment of a reactor pursuant to Article 23, paragraph 1 of the ReactorRegulation Act (including recognition given to the State under the provisionsof said paragraph applied by replacing the terms pursuant to the provisionsof Article 76 of the Reactor Regulation Act, but excluding permission for areactor established on a ship);(c) a person or an organization that has obtained permission for a storagebusiness pursuant to Article 43-4, paragraph 1 of the Reactor Regulation Act(including recognition given to the State under the provisions of saidparagraph applied by replacing the terms pursuant to the provisions of Article 76 of the Reactor Regulation Act);(d) a person or an organization that has been designated in terms of areprocessing business pursuant to Article 44, paragraph 1 of the ReactorRegulation Act (including recognition given to the State under the provisionsof said paragraph applied by replacing the terms pursuant to the provisionsof Article 76 of the Reactor Regulation Act);(e) a person or an organization that has obtained permission for a disposalbusiness pursuant to Article 51-2, paragraph 1 of the Reactor Regulation Act(including recognition given to the State under the provisions of said2

paragraph applied by replacing the terms pursuant to the provisions of Article 76 of the Reactor Regulation Act);(f) a person or an organization that has obtained permission for using nuclearfuel materials pursuant to Article 52, paragraph 1 of the Reactor RegulationAct (including recognition given to the State under the provisions of saidparagraph applied by replacing the terms pursuant to the provisions of Article 76 of the Reactor Regulation Act) (limited to a person or anorganization that is deemed to have to put into place an operational safetyprogram pursuant to the provisions of Article 56-3, paragraph 1 of theReactor Regulation Act);(iv) "nuclear site" means a factory or an operating site where a nuclear operatorconducts the operation of the reactor, etc.;(v) "emergency response measures" means temporary measures that should beimplemented in order to prevent the progression (expansion) of a nucleardisaster (including the probability of the occurrence of a nuclear disaster)during the period from the issuance of a declaration of a nuclear emergencysituation under the provisions of Article 15, paragraph 2 to the issuance of adeclaration of the cancellation of a nuclear emergency situation under theprovisions of paragraph 4 of said Article;(vi) "measures to prevent nuclear emergency" means measures that should beimplemented to prevent the occurrence of a nuclear disaster;(vii) "measures for restoration from nuclear emergency" means measures thatshould be implemented to prevent the progression (expansion) of a nucleardisaster (including the probability of the occurrence of a nuclear disaster) or topromote nuclear disaster recovery efforts (excluding compensation by a nuclearoperator for nuclear damage prescribed in Article 2, paragraph 2 of the Act onCompensation for Nuclear Damage pursuant to the provisions of said Act) afterthe issuance of a declaration of the cancellation of a nuclear emergencysituation under the provisions of Article 15, paragraph 4;(viii) "designated administrative organ" means a designated administrative organprescribed in Article 2, item (iii) of the Basic Act on Disaster Control Measures;(ix) "designated local administrative organ" means a designated localadministrative organ prescribed in Article 2, item (iv) of the Basic Act onDisaster Control Measures;(x) "designated public institution" means a designated public institutionprescribed in Article 2, item (v) of the Basic Act on Disaster Control Measures;(xi) "designated local public institution" means a designated local publicinstitution prescribed in Article 2, item (vi) of the Basic Act on Disaster ControlMeasures; and(xii) "disaster prevention plan" means a disaster prevention plan prescribed in3